terabyte

/ˈtɛɹəˌbaɪt/

//ˈtɛɹəˌbaɪt// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"terabyte" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“terabyte” is uncommon English (frequency #84,823 among 3,151 “T” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#84,823
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - One trillion (10¹², or 1,000,000,000,000) bytes or 1,000 gigabytes.

Corpus desk

Index EN-terabyte · terabyte · English

terabyte · rank #84,823 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #84,823
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH Tawney

Nearest frequency peer: Tawney (-3 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “terabyte”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “terabyte” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for terabyte
PropertyValue
Headwordterabyte
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈtɛɹəˌbaɪt/
Letters8
Frequency rank#84,823
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “terabyte” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).terabytefalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “Tawney” (#84,820), “thems” (#84,826), “Therrien” (#84,827). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “terabyte” is #84,823. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

terabyte is uncommon English at frequency #84,823 among 3,151 “T” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈtɛɹəˌbaɪt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

terabyte doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From tera- + byte. The correct English form is terabyte, spelled T-E-R-A-B-Y-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    One trillion (10¹², or 1,000,000,000,000) bytes or 1,000 gigabytes.
  2. 2
    A tebibyte.

Etymology

From tera- + byte.

Synonyms

TB

This word in other languages

téraoctet(Français)Terabyte(Deutsch)terabyte(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "terabyte"?
"terabyte" is spelled T-E-R-A-B-Y-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈtɛɹəˌbaɪt/.
What does "terabyte" mean?
As a noun, "terabyte" means: One trillion (10¹², or 1,000,000,000,000) bytes or 1,000 gigabytes.
How do you pronounce "terabyte"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "terabyte" is /ˈtɛɹəˌbaɪt/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "terabyte"?
From tera- + byte. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "terabyte", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Therrien#84,827Tameside#84,818tailbone#84,815tympanic#84,851

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list